In the Hegelian philosophie tradition aesthetics is interpreted as philosop
hy of art. Since already Hegel envisions a possible end of art, for authors
such as Henri Lefebvre and Luc Ferry the development of art in the previou
s century seems only to confirm the views offered by Hegel. A different vie
w is that of Arthur Danto who speaks not only of a "postromantic" art (Pete
r Burger) but of a "post-historical" one. In spite of such views it appears
that art and therefore aesthetics as a philosophy of art have lost much of
their former importance. What therefore often occurs in relation to contem
porary culture are attempts to develop a philosophy which would be focused
on culture which is gaining in importance and which would thus complement t
he extant philosophy of art. The author discusses two such attempts, namely
those of Heinz Paetzold and Fredric Jameson. Nonetheless, in his view, in
both cases the theories offered remain insufficient and in need of further
development if they are to philosophically grasp the current changes in art
and culture.